"Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" Song Lyrics by U2

One of the most traditionally U2-sounding tracks on Zooropa also stands out as one of the band’s finest, and it serves as a tribute to Ol’ Blue Eyes himself. This song originated during the Achtung Baby sessions, where it was initially titled "Sinatra," a nod to the Edge’s attempt to evoke the crooner’s essence with a Tin Pan Alley-inspired piano melody. 

Bono had a bit of a bromance going on with Sinatra at one point they dueted on I've got you under my skin which served as the b-side to the Stay single. Indeed, Two Shots of Happy, One Shot of Sad was written for him. Ultimately, Frank's daughter Nancy Sinatra recorded a version. 

The track found its place when German director Wim Wenders – who had previously used the band’s remix of “Until the End of the World” for his 1991 film of the same name – asked U2 to compose the theme for his 1993 film Faraway, So Close! The film was about angels who want to become human and live on Earth.

"Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" Song Lyrics by U2

Green light, 7-Eleven
You stop in for a pack of cigarettes
You don't smoke, don't even want to
Hey now, check your change
Dressed up like a car crash
The wheels are turning but you're upside down
You say when he hits you you don't mind
Because when he hurts you you feel alive
Oh now, is that what it is

Red light, grey morning
You stumble out of a hole in the ground
A vampire or a victim
It depends on who's around
You used to stay up to watch the adverts
You could lip-synch to the talk shows
And if you look, you look through me
And when you talk it's not to me
And when I touch you, you don't feel a thing

If I could stay, then the night would give you up
Stay, and the day would keep its trust
Stay, and the night would be enough

Faraway, so close up with the static and the radio
With satellite television you can go anywhere
Miami, New Orleans, London, Belfast and Berlin
And if you listen I can't call
And if you jump, you just might fall
And if you shout, I'll only hear you
If I could stay then the night would give you up
Stay then the day would keep its trust
Stay with the demons you drowned
Stay with the spirit I found
Stay and the night would be enough

Three o'clock in the morning
It's quiet and there's no one around
Just the bang and the clatter as an angel runs to ground
Just the bang and the clatter as an angel hits the ground

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"Stay (Faraway, So Close!)" is a song layered with emotional complexity, capturing a sense of yearning, isolation, and the paradox of distance and proximity, both physically and emotionally. Bono has described it as reflecting the perspective of angels who long to become human, a theme tied directly to Wim Wenders' film Faraway, So Close! where celestial beings observe human life but can’t fully participate in it without losing their immortality. 

This sense of watching life from a distance, yet being so near, underpins the lyrical mood of the song. Bono once said, “It’s about how you can be right beside someone and feel a million miles away.” The lyrics tap into that universal feeling of being close to something or someone, yet unable to truly grasp it, whether it's love, a relationship, or even life itself. The recurring imagery of sleepless nights and fleeting moments – “dressed up like a car crash” – underscores the emotional wreckage of desire and the toll it takes.

In many ways, the song plays on the tension between wanting to stay in the comfort of the familiar and the pull toward something deeper, yet more dangerous or vulnerable. Bono's reflective delivery highlights this tension, and the yearning in lines like “If I could stay, then the night would give you up” speaks to an unattainable permanence, where even love can feel elusive despite its proximity. It’s a meditation on the limits of connection and the sacrifices we make, often unknowingly, to be truly present in life, love, and relationships. 

Check out the lyrics to U2's Lemon.